Presenter Bios
Welcomes | Benediction
(Fordham Undergraduate Student: Gabelli School of Business)
Nicola Giovanni D’Abundo (He/Him) is a Finance major at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business, hailing from Springfield, Pennsylvania. Their academic and professional work centers on the intersections of finance, environmental justice, and community impact. They currently serve as an EPA Flourishing in Communities Organizer through Fordham’s Center for Community Engaged Learning (CCEL), where they support frontline environmental justice efforts across New York City, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and US Virgin Islands.
At Fordham, D’Abundo has been an active advocate for equity and inclusion, serving in the United Student Government and as a panelist on the university’s Diversity and First-Generation Student Activism Forum. A dedicated leader in community-based programs, they have participated in Fordham’s Urban Plunge program every year of their undergraduate career - first as a participant, then as an Urban Plunge Assistant (UPA), and currently as a two-time Urban Plunge Captain. In 2024, they led fundraising efforts, and in 2025, they now serve as the Education and Formation Captain.
They also participated in a CCEL Global Outreach service project and are preparing to lead an immersion trip to El Paso in the upcoming fall semester. Beyond campus, D’Abundo has represented Fordham at the SOMOS Conference in Albany and the New Jersey League of Municipalities Conference in Atlantic City. They previously interned with AmeriHealth Caritas, a managed care organization committed to expanding healthcare access for underserved populations earning under $16,000 annually. In that role, they contributed to unclaimed property initiatives and financial reconciliations - analyzing gaps in fund disbursement within a healthcare system increasingly shaped by for-profit pressures in the Philadelphia region. D’Abundo will be joining Paramount Global as a Finance Intern in Summer 2026.
(Vice President, Fordham University)
Travis Proulx joined Fordham in January 2025 as the University’s inaugural vice president for external affairs. Proulx leads Fordham’s work advocating resources at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as deepening Fordham’s positive community impact in the Bronx, Manhattan, Westchester, and globally. Prior to joining Fordham, Proulx (pronounced proo) served the State University of New York (SUNY), where he led government relations, partnerships, and communications for the largest comprehensive system of public higher education in the country. Proulx successfully advocated for the expansion of the State’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) and Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), as well as the creation of professional development institutes that operationalized SUNY’s commitment to ensuring diversity, equity, and inclusion in leadership. He also negotiated New York’s name, image, likeness law, and secured historic funding for the research and development of semiconductor technology. Before his service with SUNY, Proulx led advocacy and communications for Metropolitan Public Strategies, Environmental Advocates of New York, and the State of New York. Key campaigns include passage of New York’s groundbreaking climate emissions law and the state’s 2014 ban on fracking.
Father Phil Judge, S.J.
(Executive Director, Fordham Campus Ministry)
Rev. Philip Judge, SJ is our new Executive Director of Campus Ministry. Before accepting his position at Fordham, he spent many years in Jesuit secondary education teaching English and working in administration at McQuaid Jesuit, Fordham Prep, and Regis. As a native of Queens and a Fordham graduate, he is excited to be back at Rose Hill where he studied English as a Jesuit scholastic and did graduate work in philosophy, after which he pursued additional graduate studies in Theology and English in Berkeley, California. He believes that Jesuit spirituality -- from finding God in all things to seeking to be men and women for and with others -- can animate everything we do at a Jesuit and Catholic University. In his free time, Fr. Phil loves exploring New York and reading, particularly U.S. literature.
Faith Based Approaches to Environmental Justice and Sustainability
(NY Renews)
Rachel is the Coalition Organizing Fellow at NY Renews, a state-wide environmental justice coalition with nearly 400 organizational members fighting for climate policy and justice across NY State. She began community organizing with one of NY Renews' coalition members as a volunteer with WE ACT for Environmental Justice. Her focus has been primarily on climate and housing justice issues at the state and city level. She also spent several years as a Sustainability Consultant at EY supporting corporate stakeholders with decarbonization and greenhouse gas accounting. Rachel believes in the power of community-building to achieve social and climate justice. She graduated from Fordham's Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill in 2021 with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, concentrating in Accounting and Sustainability. She is based in Harlem, NYC.
(Hindus for Human Rights)
Born in South India and brought up in Michigan, Sumana has a background in the tech and social impact space, with a specialization in the intersection between nature and human rights. She works in natural resource management, sustainable development, and disaster response, with a justice and anti-caste lens. She believes liberation, theology, and nature are deeply intertwined and is currently a member of the NYC chapter of Hindus for Human Rights.
(Fordham)
Thomas Massaro S.J., holds the Laurence J. McGinley Endowed Chair in Religion and Society at Fordham University. He came to Fordham in 2018 as Professor of Moral Theology. He is a Jesuit priest who earned a doctorate in Christian social ethics from Emory University. His teaching and writings are devoted to Catholic social teaching and its recommendations for public policies oriented to social justice, peace, worker rights, ecology and poverty alleviation. His most recent book is Pope Francis as Moral Leader published by Paulist Press in 2023. Besides his work as McGinley Professor, Father Massaro also serves as Associate Director of Fordham’s Center for Ethics Education.
(Greenfaith)
The Rev. Fletcher Harper, Executive Director of GreenFaith, is a pioneer of the global religious environmental movement. He has helped spearhead the faith-based fossil fuel divestment movement, mobilized tens of thousands of people of faith for climate marches and public actions, and built GreenFaith from a New Jersey-focused group into a global organization with staff in 12 countries spanning Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas. He co-founded Shine, an international campaign that brings religious leaders together to achieve universal access to clean energy, and the Interfaith Rainforest Initiative.
(Dayenu)
Jack M. Gorman, M.D. co-founded Critica Inc, a non-profit corporation, with his daughter, Dr. Sara Gorman, in 2016 and is its President. Critica is devoted to counteracting science denial and promoting the acceptance of science in health and safety decision-making. Dr. Gorman was a summa cum laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, received his medical degree from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University and received residency and fellowship training in the Department of Psychiatry of Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute program. He was on the faculty of Columbia University from 1981 to 2002, becoming Lieber Professor, Vice-chair for Research, Professor of Psychiatry and Radiology, and Director of the Lieber Center for Schizophrenia Research. He then became Klingenstein Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Professor of Neuroscience of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Dr. Gorman authored or co-authored more than 400 scientific articles and chapters, and was continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for his research from 1981 until 2006. He won numerous awards for his research and service to psychiatry from organizations including the American Psychiatric Association, American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, and Society for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and is one of the most frequently cited authors in the psychiatry and neuroscience literatures.
Dr. Gorman is co-editor of the textbooks Treatments that Work, now in its fourth edition, and Comprehensive Textbook of AIDS Psychiatry, now in its second edition, and author of the popular book The Essential Guide to Psychiatric Drugs, which appeared in its fourth edition in 2007. With his daughter, Dr. Sara Gorman, he wrote Denying To the Grave, on the reasons behind denial of scientific medical evidence, published by Oxford University Press in 2016 and in a revised edition in 2021. It has been discussed in media throughout the world. Dr. Gorman’s expertise is in behavioral healthcare management and improvement, psychopharmacology, psychotherapy and clinical and basic neuroscience. His book, Neuroscience at the Intersection of Mind and Brain, was published in 2018. Dr. Gorman is on the board of several philanthropic organizations, including GreenFaith, American Friends of Amal-Tikva, the Social Venture Fund for Jewish Arab Equality and Shared Society, and the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale. He is active in numerous climate organizations including GreenFaith, Dayenu, the Jewish Climate Action Network of New York, Bronx Jews for Climate Action, and the Bronx Climate and Environmental Justice Network. He lives in New York City with his wife, Dr. Lauren Gorman and is proud to have two daughters and three grandchildren.
(Faithfully Sustainable)
Kadjahtou Balde is a Muslim entrepreneur and environmental justice advocate. She is transforming her family’s Harlem shop into a thriving thrift store through Modify while leading Faithfully Sustainable, NYC’s first Muslim-led environmental justice organization. Modify is also one of NYC’s first modest fashion thrift shops, and it is centered on recycling modest fashion and promoting circular fashion as a means of self-independence—not only for herself as a Black Muslim woman raised in the Bronx but also for her community. Previously, she worked as a Community Associate at WeWork and later as a Program Manager for Entrepreneurial Development at the NYS Small Business Division, where she helped distribute millions in COVID-19 relief and technical assistance to small businesses. She graduated from the State University of New York at Potsdam as a Chancellor’s Award recipient, earning a double major in Biology and Communication with a minor in Arabic.
Grassroots Action: Environmental Justice Advocacy 101
(Bronx River Alliance)
Siddhartha Sanchez is a lifelong environmental activist who centers racial and economic justice, deeply believing in the power of nature to heal and build community. Siddhartha’s work with the Bronx River Alliance began in 2004 as staff for Rep. José E. Serrano where he stewarded federal support for capital projects outlined in the Bronx River Watershed Plan, including Concrete Plant Park, River House, and Starlight Park.
Siddhartha's longstanding commitment to the River and its communities has evolved over the years, and he has served as a partner, ally, and funder of the Alliance. After leaving government, Siddhartha’s support for the Alliance continued through grants he managed on behalf of the Simon Bolivar Foundation. Over the last seven years Siddhartha has consulted for local groups and aligned developers, advancing longstanding community development initiatives impacting the Bronx River, Soundview, and Hunts Point communities.
Born and raised in Washington Heights along the Hudson River, Siddhartha is a lifelong cyclist, passionate paddler, and amateur farmer whose parents migrated from the Dominican Republic. He enjoys spending time with family, making meals from the garden, and being active.
(Loving the Bronx/Bronx River Alliance)
Nilka Martell is a passionate environmentalist and community advocate who has significantly contributed to the revitalization of the Bronx River and surrounding areas. Through her organizations, Loving The Bronx and the Bronx River Alliance, Nilka has mobilized countless volunteers for cleanup and conservation projects, fostering a strong sense of community and environmental stewardship. Nilka Martell’s campaign to cap the Cross Bronx Expressway and convert it into green space may finally be reaching fruition.
After years of lobbying local elected officials, Martell was joined by U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Rep. Ritchie Torres and a slew of other officials in November 2023 to celebrate the allocation of federal funds to cap the expressway from the $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed by Congress. The project will take years, but the end to the flow of pollution from the Cross Bronx into surrounding neighborhoods is in sight.
Faith in Action: Building Coalitions for Climate Justice (Walsh Classroom 44)
Rachel Coyle (see bio above)
Art Making with Lady K Fever (Martyr Lawn)
(Artist)
Kathleena Howie (Lady K-Fever) is a New York City based street artist, writer, social justice activist, curator and educator that specializes in producing unique projects that focus on community through collaboration, compassion, liberation, empowerment and healing. Her passion and dedication to the arts as a catalyst for change lead her into the arts and education field developing unique workshops and experiences that transform communities through Art. In 2020, she received the inaugural Bronx Council on the Arts BRIO award in Visual arts: Street Art in 2020. She has worked The Museum of Art and Design, Studio Museum, The Bronx Museum, Queens Museum, ElMuseo Del Barrio, The Laundromat Project, Masterwork Museum of Bermudian Art. and with NYC Dept. of Cultural Affairs, NYC City Council: Anti-Gun violence initiative. She is currently a Guest Lecturer at Universities and Founder/ Director of The Bronx Graffiti Art Gallery/ NYC Graffiti Women's Festival.
Towards Food Sovereignty: Advancing Climate Justice Through Circular Food Innovation in the Bronx – A BRICS Collaboration
(Fordham)
Shellae Versey, PhD is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Fordham University, where she directs the Critical Health + Social Ecology Lab. She earned a PhD (Psychology) and MS (Epidemiology) from the University of Michigan, and an MPH from Columbia University. Dr. Versey completed a T32 NIMH Training Fellowship at the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, and she examines drivers of inequity across the life course. Dr. Versey’s research specifically focuses on place-based social determinants of health among Black women and minoritized older adults, examining the impact of global trends (e.g., gentrification, displacement, climate change) on neighborhood health, housing, and local resource systems. Dr. Versey is interested in the role of intersectionality and how systems of poverty, racism, and gender shape lived experiences and health.
(ReBORN Farms)
Mr. Obispo is the founder of ReBORN Farms in the Bronx. He has worked as a community organizer, food justice activist, and social entrepreneur for the last ten years. Creating initiatives such as cooperatives and social enterprises in addition to other roles. His work is focused on food insecurity, making access to nutritionally dense foods, and self-determination/empowerment within an individual's and family's health and wellness.
(Graham Windham/Fordham)
Dr. Lopez is a seasoned community activist, educator, and advocate with over 40 years of experience in leadership development and social justice. She currently serves as Senior Leader for Community Leadership Development at Graham Windham’s Family Enrichment Center, co-creating programs that foster community strength and resilience. She co-founded Casa Atabex Ache, a healing space for Women of Color in the South Bronx, and has taught at John Jay College and Silberman School of Social Work.
(Fordham)
Dr. Akane Zusho, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Graduate School of Education at Fordham University. She holds a B.A. and M.A. in psychology, as well as a Ph.D. in Education and Psychology, from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Dr. Zus
Performance of Flood Sensor Aunty
Sabina Seth Unni
Flood Sensor Aunty - written and directed by Sabina Seth Unni - is about a flood sensor working at her aunt’s chai shop who really wants to be a movie star. Halfway between really funny devised theater and community disaster prevention, this show is about how the best way to protect yourself from flooding, climate change, and despair is through knowing your neighbors. Performances have been supported by the NYC Emergency Management (as part of National Disaster Prevention Month), FloodNet, Chhaya CDC, Street Works Climate Art Festival, Huntington Art Works, and Culture Push, so all performances are free and audiences left with bellies full of (oat milk) chai, doubles, flood alarms, headlamps, and calls to action about legalizing basement apartments.